Lunch-meat stacker pro.

ABSTRACT

The invention provides an improved collapsible food container made to save space in the refrigerator and time for the user. It consists of individual, sealable, collapsible plastic bag sections that can be made to be disposable or reusable to fit the needs of its owner. The frame includes spring-locking pivoting braces to provide stability when collapsing and expanding the machine. Each said sealable section can interlock with each other and the frame. An airflow control device is used on each of the plastic bag sections allowing air flow out but not in; similar to a check valve. By gently pushing down on the top of the machine, dispersing the air out of the section(s) creating a vacuum, will keep the machine collapsed until the section(s) is/are reopened. Each machine frame can also be stacked upon one another creating a versatile machine that will fit in a cooler or lunch pale and can go just about anywhere.

My invention is a sectioning device capable of compressing unwanted air and unused space out of it while storing its contents.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

I, Benjamin Seymour, have invented a new machine for storing items. “The Lunch-Meat Stacker Pro.” is a machine for the storage of food and/or other perishables. It is designed to save space by compressing to an ideal size when storing and then expanding to an optimal size to retrieve its contents. It consists essentially of a top, bottom, hinged folding/unfolding braces, pivoting arm with pins to attach the said braces (See FIG. 10), springs, (reusable or throw-away) sealable plastic bags linked together by male/female connecters (See FIG. 9), an airflow control device on each section of the linked plastic bags (letting air flow out but not in), and sliding trays that fit into each of the said linked plastic bag sections.

Each said plastic bag section can be independently sealed from each other section. When the said machine is pushed downward, by the force of one's own hand, most all of the air will disperse out of the machine, through the airflow control device, creating a vacuum that will keep the machine compressed. When the machine's sections are reopened (individual sections or all of each of the sections at once) the springs will act upon the hinged folding/unfolding braces to expand said section(s) to it's own capacity.

When dealing with retrieving an item (like lunch-meat or cheeses) the said machine can easily open to the said item/lunch-meat or cheese and a person can effortlessly slide out the tray holding the said item(s), take what they need, then quickly re-close the machine with the same ease. I believe this machine will hasten the time spent, to make a sandwich, by several minutes. Labels can be used to show the said plastic bag section's contents expediting the sandwich making process even further. The displacement of air will keep the contents fresher longer when compressed and placed in a refrigerated state.

Constructing “The Lunch Meat Stacker Pro.” out of high-grade polymer will keep it light-weight and durable, also making it refrigerator and dishwasher safe. The pivoting arm, pins, and springs should be made of stainless steel or some other non-corrosive material. The said linked sealable plastic bags can be thrown away and new replacement said linked sealable plastic bags can fit into the housing. The size of this machine can vary but an example is approximately: width 6½″, length 11″, height (expanded) 11″, and height (compressed) 1¾″.

Making Said “The lunch Meat Stacker Pro.” with disposable, sealable plastic bags can be another asset to have making more options for these said machines. Each individual sealable plastic bag can be linked/detached from one another and therefor replaced. See FIG. 9. In this way people can have the option to either clean the said sealable plastic bag sections or replace them with new ones. The said “Lunch meat stacker Pro”, can also be placed on it's side and the said Air release valve placed in the front (See FIG. 9) so it's side becomes it's bottom and liquid type storage is now possible.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, which form a part of this specification;

FIG. 1 is a view of the top of the machine.

FIG. 2 is a view of the side (expanded) of the machine.

FIG. 3 is a view of the side (compressed) of the machine.

FIG. 4 is a view of the bottom of the machine.

FIG. 5 is a view of the front (expanded) of the machine.

FIG. 6 is a view of the rear (expanded) of the machine.

FIG. 7 is a view of the front (compressed) of the machine.

FIG. 8 is a view of the rear (compressed) of the machine.

FIG. 9 is a view of sliding sealable plastic bags connecting to one another. * Also shows the option of placing the Air Release valve in the front of the sealable bag.

FIG. 10 is a view of the movable mechanisms comprised of pivoting arm, spring, and pins.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

With reference to the drawings, the linking holes 1, shown in FIG. 1, are used to fit the rubber feet 4, shown in FIG. 4, into. This makes it possible to link several machines, of the same size, together. The rubber feet 4 also deter the machine from sliding on different surfaces. The zipper 2 allows each of the plastic bag sections 9 to be sealed airtight (refer to the several patents on sealable plastic bags). Pin(s) 3 are used to allow the pivoting arm(s) 10 and brace(s) 7 to swivel on an axis, linking them to the push pin(s) 14 which is directly related to the action of the spring(s) 6 as illustrated in FIG. 10. The air-flow valve 5 only allows air to pass through it one way (out of the sealable plastic bag sections 9). This allows the air to disperse out of the linked sealable plastic bag sections 9 when they are sealed in the front by the zipper 2; This is shown in FIGS. 3, 7, and 8 when the machine is collapsed. The function of the tray(s) 8 is to easily fit into each of the sealable plastic bag sections 9 and slide out the contents to the retriever when the machine is expanded. The female connector 11 couples with the male connector 12 to attach and lock (refer to the several patents on male and female locking connectors) each of the sealable plastic bag sections 9 together with the machine's housing to form one unit. This is best depicted in FIG. 9, with the indicator arrows 13 showing the direction of how each of the plastic bag sealable sections 9 and the housing fit into one another. FIG. 9 also depicts the air-flow valve 5 on the front instead of the rear of the sealable plastic bag sections 9, where as, once all the sealable plastic bag sections 9 and the housing are locked into place by the connectors (female 11 and male 12), the machine can easily be turned on its side, the tray(s) 8 removed and liquid type storage is now possible. 

1-4. (canceled)
 5. A sectioning device, made out of high-grade polymer to be stored inside and out of the refrigerator, able to compress and expand, with sliding trays, for quick and easy accessibility.
 6. The “Sealable plastic bags that are linked together” can be thrown away and replaced with new said linked sealable plastic bag sections, including an array of many different sizes to hold various sized objects.
 7. A stackable storage machine consisting essentially of compounded sealable sections (with an air-flow device allowing air to flow out but not in) which compress individually or altogether, creating a vacuum within each said sealable section, but when each said sealable section is opened, the fullness of the air will diminish the vacuum chamber letting the springs act upon the folding/unfolding braces expanding each said sealable section to the desired capacity.
 8. By turning the said machine 90 degrees, making its rear now the bottom, and placing the Air-flow device (as described in claim 7) on the side with the zippers, this machine will also be able to hold and store liquid type storage. 